Loss
by BG-13
Summary: Endgame aftermath in which Korra did not get her Bending back. Korrasami friendship. Enjoy. Oneshot.


She wished they would just leave her alone, let her get lost in her own world. She wished they'd let her forget the reality she now faced. Mako and Bolin had been to see her, trying to get her to say something, anything. She wouldn't. She just continued to stare at the wall till they left. Tenzin and the Airbenders had tried as well, but got the same results. Finally, it seemed the visitors had stopped. And all the while, one word kept repeating itself in the girl's head.

_Failure_.

Amon had taken her Bending, something she prized more than anything. Bending was her entire life, it was the thing that made her who she was. But now it was just...gone, leaving a huge gap in the Water Tribe girl's soul. It was as if her essence had been stripped from her, leaving nothing but a shell. An empty shell.

_Failure_.

The first Avatar to lose their Bending; thats how people would remember her. The girl that disgraced the Avatars. She could feel the disappointment around her, suffocating her. The past Avatars were no doubt pitying her, debating whether or not they'd made a mistake. She wouldnt be surprised if they had.

_Failure_.

Without her Bending, Korra felt worthless, useless. Sure, she could still Airbend...but what good did that do her. The Avatar was supposed to be the master of all 'four' elements. But as Katara had said, her connection to the others had been severed and may never be recovered.

_Failure_.

She vaguely heard her bedroom door open, along with the sound of light treding boots. She didnt acknowledge the visitor, her eyes still locked on the opposite wall.

"Korra?"

No response.

The bed dipped as the new arrival sat down on the edge. She felt a hand on her shoulder but she made no move that she did. The person's grip tightened slightly. "Korra." Her voice was hard, commanding the younger girl's attention. "Korra, look at me."

"Go away, Asami."

The heiress was somewhat relieved to hear her speak. She wasnt too far gone after all. "Korra, everything's going to be alright."

The new Airbender shook her head, the movement barely even noticable. "No. Its not."

"Yes it is. It may not seem like it now but things have to get worse before they get better."

"Thanks for that little nugget of wisdom," she replied, her voice still devoid of all emotion. "Maybe next you'll tell me that Im not as weak and worthless as I think."

"You're not."

Korra ground her teeth together, the numbness wearing away to anger. She was angry. Angry at Mako and Bolin and Tenzin and Asami for not leaving her the hell alone. Angry at Katara for not being able to bring her Bending back. She was angry at her parents and the White Lotus. She was angry at Amon for taking her Bending from her! Her blood was boiling and she felt like she needed to hit something, lash out someway.

Finally, her rage found an outlet. "I lost my Bending, Asami! I've lost the one thing that separates me from everyone else, that makes me, me! Do you have any idea what thats like? How worthless that makes me?"

_Failure_.

She was up now, standing in front of the socialite. Her entire body language told the raven haired beauty that she was looking for a fight. She wasnt going to give it to her. Asami sighed, keeping her temper under control.

"I understand-"

"No you dont! None of you do!"

"In case you havent noticed, we've all had something taken from us, Korra!" she finally snapped back, getting to her feet and towering over the brunette.

"Oh please," she shorter girl replied with a cruel twist of her lips. "Its not like your father ever loved you!"

_**Smack!**_

Korra's head snapped to the side but she didnt even flinch when the chipped manicured hand made contact with her cheek. Slowly, she turned her gaze back on the emerald eyed heiress, her blue eyes showing no emotion. The socialite's expression mirrored hers.

"Just because Amon took your Bending doesnt mean I'm going to let you treat me and everyone else like shit," Asami told her, her tone deadly calm. She watched as the ex-Bender seemed to slump as she leaned against the wall, only to end up sitting on the floor.

_Failure_.

The girls were silent for a long moment. After a while the younger girl let out a long sigh and muttered something. The Sato heiress stepped closer, not quite hearing what she'd said.

"What?"

"I'm sorry," Korra repeated, louder so she could be heard. "I-I had no right to say that. I'm sorry."

The raven haired girl nodded. "I'm sorry too," she responded. "I shouldn't have hit you. Though it seems to have knocked some sense into you."

"I wouldn't go that far," her friend muttered.

Asami sighed and sat on the floor next to the shorter girl. They sat that way for a long time until the Nonbender slowly wrapped an arm around the young Avatar's shoulder. For a moment Korra froze at the gesture, not knowing exactly how to react but then she laid her head on her friend's shoulder.

"My life is over," she whispered. "I'm a failure. That's how everyone is going to remember me; 'Korra the failure', 'the Avatar who lost her Bending'. The Spirits made a mistake, choosing me."

The older girl shook her head. "No. Korra, being the Avatar isn't all about Bending. It's about connecting with the other elements."

"Katara said those connections were severed."

"That's not what I meant," the heiress continued. "Being the Avatar, at least how I see it, is about how you connect to your surroundings. Tenzin said that the four nations are really one people. That's what you represent; the four nations, not the four Bending arts."

Korra seemed to think about it for a moment before she lowered her gaze again. The next time she spoke her voice was broken, monotone, but full of the turmoil of emotions inside of her. "Why," she whispered. "Why didn't they stop him?"

"Why didn't who stop him?" the other girl asked curiously.

"The Avatar's; my past lives. Why didn't they stop Amon? The Avatar state…it's supposed to be a defense mechanism. It's activated when the Avatar is in danger. Why didn't they help me? Why did they let him take my Bending away?" She sounded so lost and confused.

Asami was quiet for a long moment. She didn't have an answer to that. Truthfully, no one did. No one understood the Avatar, better than the Avatar themself.

"I don't know," she responded honestly. "Maybe they didn't think you needed to be saved. Maybe all of this is their way of telling you something." It was the best and most honest answer she could come up with.

The ex Waterbender's brow furrowed at this. What could they possibly be trying to tell her?

_Failure_.

Each girl remained silent for a long while, each drifting in their own thoughts. Korra was trying her hardest to understand Asami's logic. She was trying but...what could her past lives be trying to tell her by letting her Bending be stripped from her? The only explanation that came to mind was them believing she couldn't handle the four elements.

Korra shook her head, Asami's words filtering through her mind. She didnt represent the elements. The Avatar represents unity of the nations. But that still left the question of why?

Suddenly, Asami chuckled. The sound caused Korra to look up at the heiress. "What's so funny?" she asked.

Asami shook her head, a sad smile on her face, a distant gleam in her eye. "There's something that I just remembered."

The younger girl cocked her head, sitting up so the older girl could have her full attention. "What is it?"

"I used to have this doll. I absolutely loved it, it was my favorite. My mom named it for me. She used to call it Sami, because when I was little I couldn't say my whole name," she replied with a small smile. "Every night before I'd go to bed, she would tuck me in and play with Sami and I. It was our routine; our thing that we'd do. When-" She paused when her voice cracked, clearing her throat against the tears.

"When she was killed, it sounds so selfish now, I was sort of…mad at her. I was mad because she wouldn't come and play with Sami and me anymore...It hadn't hit me yet, what the full consequences were," the heiress finished, wiping away a tear that had managed to slip past her defenses.

Korra looked over at her friend, realizing that the only selfish person in the room was her. She had pushed everyone away, not caring about what they had lost, for they had lost things far greater than her. Her Bending was expendable. The lives of other people, however, weren't.

Asami would never get her mother back, nor Bolin or Mako would see their parents again. But her Bending…her Bending could still be retrieved. There was still a chance.

Korra was hesitant when she spoke next. "Asami?"

"Hmm?"

"Thank you...for sharing that. And for not giving up on me."

"Yeah, well, someone needed to knock some sense into you," she replied with a light laugh, some of the tension in the room leaving with the sound.

_********************* This show needed some more of Korra and Asami being pals! I mean, seriously, if not for all the stupid love triangle (or whatever the shape was for this show) those two would've been as thick as thieves! Especially after seeing how badass Asami is in episode seven and so on! Two seriously badass chicks guys! They could rule the world! _

_But I digress. Anyway, hope you enjoyed and hope you review. Thank maila as well while you're at it._

_We out! Peace!_


End file.
